Cain the Elder

Deckard Cain is found near the well in the center of town. He provides most of the game lore and plot info, gives a number of quests, and identifies items for 100 gold each.

Cain is the only NPC from Diablo to appear (as an NPC) in Diablo II.

Voice Actor: Michael Gough

Dialogues

Greeting

Hello, my friend. Stay awhile and listen...

Gossip

General

While you are venturing deeper into the Labyrinth you may find tomes of great knowledge hidden there.

Read them carefully for they can tell you things that even I cannot.

I know of many myths and legends that may contain answers to questions that may arise in your journeys into the Labyrinth. If you come across challenges and questions to which you seek knowledge, seek me out and I will tell you what I can.

About Adria

The witch, Adria, is an anomaly here in Tristram. She arrived shortly after the Cathedral was desecrated while most everyone else was fleeing. She had a small hut constructed at the edge of town, seemingly overnight, and has access to many strange and arcane artifacts and tomes of knowledge that even I have never seen before.

About Farnham

Poor Farnham. He is a disquieting reminder of the doomed assembly that entered into the Cathedral with Lazarus on that dark day. He escaped with his life, but his courage and much of his sanity were left in some dark pit. He finds comfort only at the bottom of his tankard nowadays, but there are occasional bits of truth buried within his constant ramblings.

About Gillian

Gillian is a fine woman. Much adored for her high spirits and her quick laugh, she holds a special place in my heart. She stays on at the tavern to support her elderly grandmother who is too sick to travel. I sometimes fear for her safety, but I know that any man in the village would rather die than see her harmed.

About Griswold

Griswold - a man of great action and great courage. I bet he never told you about the time he went into the Labyrinth to save Wirt, did he? He knows his fair share of the dangers to be found there, but then again - so do you. He is a skilled craftsman, and if he claims to be able to help you in any way, you can count on his honesty and his skill.

About Ogden

Ogden has owned and run the Rising Sun Inn and Tavern for almost four years now. He purchased it just a few short months before everything here went to hell. He and his wife Garda do not have the money to leave as they invested all they had in making a life for themselves here. He is a good man with a deep sense of responsibility.

About Pepin

Ah, Pepin. I count him as a true friend - perhaps the closest I have here. He is a bit addled at times, but never a more caring or considerate soul has existed. His knowledge and skills are equaled by few, and his door is always open.

About Wirt

The story of Wirt is a frightening and tragic one. He was taken from the arms of his mother and dragged into the labyrinth by the small, foul demons that wield wicked spears. There were many other children taken that day, including the son of King Leoric. The Knights of the palace went below, but never returned. The Blacksmith found the boy, but only after the foul beasts had begun to torture him for their sadistic pleasures.

Gossip (About Cain)

From Adria

A chest opened in darkness holds no greater treasure than when it is opened in the light. The storyteller Cain is an enigma, but only to those who do not look. His knowledge of what lies beneath the cathedral is far greater than even he allows himself to realize.

From Farnham

Cain isn't what he says he is. Sure, sure, he talks a good story... some of 'em are real scary or funny... but I think he knows more than he knows he knows.

From Gillian

Cain has been the storyteller of Tristram for as long as I can remember. He knows so much, and can tell you just about anything about almost everything.

From Griswold

Sometimes I think that Cain talks too much, but I guess that is his calling in life. If I could bend steel as well as he can bend your ear, I could make a suit of court plate good enough for an Emperor!

From Ogden

If you want to know more about the history of our village, the storyteller Cain knows quite a bit about the past.

From Pepin

Cain is a true friend and a wise sage. He maintains a vast library and has an innate ability to discern the true nature of many things. If you ever have any questions, he is the person to go to.

From Wirt

Cain knows too much. He scares the life out of me - even more than that woman across the river. He keeps telling me about how lucky I am to be alive, and how my story is foretold in legend. I think he's off his crock.

Quests

Anvil of Fury

Griswold speaks of the Anvil of Fury - a legendary artifact long searched for, but never found. Crafted from the metallic bones of the razor pit demons, the Anvil of Fury was smelt around the skulls of the five most powerful magi of the underworld. Carved with runes of power and chaos, any weapon or armor forged upon this anvil will be immersed into the realm of chaos, imbedding it with magical properties. It is said that the unpredictable nature of chaos makes it difficult to know what the outcome of this smithing will be...

Archbishop Lazarus

Activation

This does not bode well, for it confirms my darkest fears. While I did not allow myself to believe the ancient legends, I cannot deny them now. Perhaps the time has come to reveal who I am.

My true name is Deckard Cain the Elder, and I am the last descendant of an ancient Brotherhood that was dedicated to safeguarding the secrets of a timeless evil. An evil that quite obviously has now been released.

The Archbishop Lazarus, once King Leoric's most trusted advisor, led a party of simple townsfolk into the Labyrinth to find the King's missing son, Albrecht. Quite some time passed before they returned, and only a few of them escaped with their lives.

Curse me for a fool! I should have suspected his veiled treachery then. It must have been Lazarus himself who kidnapped Albrecht and has since hidden him within the Labyrinth. I do not understand why the Archbishop turned to the darkness, or what his interest is in the child. Unless he means to sacrifice him to his dark masters!

That must be what he has planned! The survivors of his 'rescue party' say that Lazarus was last seen running into the deepest bowels of the labyrinth. You must hurry and save the prince from the sacrificial blade of this demented fiend!

Return

You must hurry and rescue Albrecht from the hands of Lazarus. The prince and the people of this kingdom are counting on you!

Black Mushroom

The witch Adria seeks a black mushroom? I know as much about Black Mushrooms as I do about Red Herrings. Perhaps Pepin the Healer could tell you more, but this is something that cannot be found in any of my stories or books.

Diablo

Your story is quite grim, my friend. Lazarus will surely burn in Hell for his horrific deed. The boy that you describe is not our prince, but I believe that Albrecht may yet be in danger. The symbol of power that you speak of must be a portal in the very heart of the labyrinth.

Know this, my friend - The evil that you move against is the Dark Lord of Terror. He is known to mortal men as Diablo. It was he who was imprisoned within the Labyrinth many centuries ago and I fear that he seeks to once again sow chaos in the realm of mankind. You must venture through the portal and destroy Diablo before it is too late!

Halls of the Blind

You recite an interesting rhyme written in a style that reminds me of other works. Let me think now - what was it?

...Darkness shrouds the Hidden. Eyes glowing unseen with only the sounds of razor claws briefly scraping to torment those poor souls who have been made sightless for all eternity. The prison for those so damned is named the Halls of the Blind...

Lachdanan

You claim to have spoken with Lachdanan? He was a great hero during his life. Lachdanan was an honorable and just man who served his King faithfully for years. But of course, you already know that.

Of those who were caught within the grasp of the King's Curse, Lachdanan would be the least likely to submit to the darkness without a fight, so I suppose that your story could be true. If I were in your place, my friend, I would find a way to release him from his torture.

Ogden's Sign

I see that this strange behavior puzzles you as well. I would surmise that since many demons fear the light of the sun and believe that it holds great power, it may be that the rising sun depicted on the sign you speak of has led them to believe that it too holds some arcane powers. Hmm, perhaps they are not all as smart as we had feared...

Poisoned Water Supply

Hmm, I don't know what I can really tell you about this that will be of any help. The water that fills our wells comes from an underground spring. I have heard of a tunnel that leads to a great lake - perhaps they are one and the same. Unfortunately, I do not know what would cause our water supply to be tainted.

The Butcher

It seems that the Archbishop Lazarus goaded many of the townsmen into venturing into the Labyrinth to find the King's missing son. He played upon their fears and whipped them into a frenzied mob. None of them were prepared for what lay within the cold earth... Lazarus abandoned them down there - left in the clutches of unspeakable horrors - to die.

The Chamber of Bone

A book that speaks of a chamber of human bones? Well, a Chamber of Bone is mentioned in certain archaic writings that I studied in the libraries of the East. These tomes inferred that when the Lords of the underworld desired to protect great treasures, they would create domains where those who died in the attempt to steal that treasure would be forever bound to defend it. A twisted, but strangely fitting, end?

The Curse of King Leoric

Ahh, the story of our King, is it? The tragic fall of Leoric was a harsh blow to this land. The people always loved the King, and now they live in mortal fear of him. The question that I keep asking myself is how he could have fallen so far from the Light, as Leoric had always been the holiest of men. Only the vilest powers of Hell could so utterly destroy a man from within...

The Magic Rock

Griswold speaks of the Heaven Stone that was destined for the enclave located in the East. It was being taken there for further study. This stone glowed with an energy that somehow granted vision beyond that which a normal man could possess. I do not know what secrets it holds, my friend, but finding this stone would certainly prove most valuable.

Valor

The Gateway of Blood and the Halls of Fire are landmarks of mystic origin. Wherever this book you read from resides it is surely a place of great power.

Legends speak of a pedestal that is carved from obsidian stone and has a pool of boiling blood atop its bone encrusted surface. There are also allusions to Stones of Blood that will open a door that guards an ancient treasure...

The nature of this treasure is shrouded in speculation, my friend, but it is said that the ancient hero Arkaine placed the holy armor Valor in a secret vault. Arkaine was the first mortal to turn the tide of the Sin War and chase the legions of darkness back to the Burning Hells.

Just before Arkaine died, his armor was hidden away in a secret vault. It is said that when this holy armor is again needed, a hero will arise to don Valor once more. Perhaps you are that hero...

Warlord of Blood

I know of only one legend that speaks of such a warrior as you describe. His story is found within the ancient chronicles of the Sin War...

Stained by a thousand years of war, blood and death, the Warlord of Blood stands upon a mountain of his tattered victims. His dark blade screams a black curse to the living; a tortured invitation to any who would stand before this Executioner of Hell.

It is also written that although he was once a mortal who fought beside the Legion of Darkness during the Sin War, he lost his humanity to his insatiable hunger for blood.